[Q] The must-know record!

[Sebasty]

Hey!

Let's imagine this:

you (or your friend) have a child who is curious about anything. They know nothing about any bands or anything, a fresh blank page.
You're both in your cozy room with good sound system, internet and Spotify.
(and your fabulous record collection)

What would you play for them, and why? 🙂

Cheers!

[AdamDam]

I would choose to play Rift by Phish, since Phish is my favorite band and this is my favorite studio album of theirs. While I usually find myself listening to live recordings by Phish, I think that their studio albums are also really good, as well as more accessible, so therefore better to play for someone who hasn’t heard the music of Phish before (or any other music). I also think that in general, listening to Phish could be a good choice for someone who hasn’t listened to music before, since they draw from a wide variety of musical genres, such as funk, progressive rock, psychedelic rock, folk, country, jazz, blues, bluegrass, and pop. There are lots of (in my opinion) great songs on the Rift album, like “Rift,” “Maze,” “It’s Ice,” “Mound,” “The Wedge,” and “Silent in the Morning,” which the kid could revisit on live recordings if they like them. Furthermore, Phish have a sense of humor and a somewhat childlike quality to their music (on this album, I think “Sparkle” and “Weigh” are especially silly), which I think might be conducive to appreciation by a kid.

https://open.spotify.com/album/3iiHj2P7DD5omB11AtNd97?si=m2BfhR4XTou3z4hwhGwMgA

[Sebasty]

Thank you for this @AdamDam 

I've listened to the album and I can definitely see what you described 🙂

I think it makes sense to offer your favourite music for the kid to listen to. That's what my mother did when she wanted me to know more bands than Empire of the Sun... :')

Anyone else?

[Peter]

Hey @Sebasty,

This made me think of my 11-year-old brother, who is still in the early stages of his music discovery journey.

Unfortunately I don't have an impressive physical record collection of my own, but if I were to go out today and buy him one record that I'd want him to listen to from start to finish (not sure if that's realistic for a Gen Z attention span), it would be...

Black Holes & Revelations - Muse

spotify:album:0lw68yx3MhKflWFqCsGkIs

To be clear, I define "must-know record" not as the best record I've ever listened to, but as the record which got me really passionate about music at around his age. In other words, I don't consider this an education in music, but rather an opportunity to connect by sharing something personal to me: a "must-know record" in order to know me, if that makes sense.

I was really captivated by Muse after I bought this album. I was just starting to play guitar and to get into a variety of rock bands (as well as punk rock, admittedly), but there was something about them which stood out for me. I was then fortunate enough to go see them live at their iconic Wembley gig in 2007 with my older brother at the tender age of 13, of which they made a live album.

While my interest in them has dipped since moving away from rock, they still have a special place in my heart. I'm curious as to how someone barely in their teens right now would respond to that record, since times and subsequent tastes in music have changed quite a bit, but I'd hope that it still holds up.

Thanks for the thought-provoking question, @Sebasty 🙂